Child Support Agency...Slaggy Maggies Creation

[SOD'EM]

A friend of mine lost custody of his children after he had solely looked after them for 18 months after his (then) Fiancee went off with another man. She then went to court and got complete custody of them, but he does have visitation. However, he has just received a letter from the Department Of Works And Pensions saying that they are deducting money from his benefits for Child Support. He is already paying back a social fund loan which means he is left with £50.01 per week. Is this allowed?

 

I don't think anyone should neglect their responsibility when it comes to their children, but how can this be allowed. The Law clearly states that the minimum amount that a man of his age requires to live on is £64 something per week. Does this not mean that they are breaking their own law, as the amount he is getting is not enough (by law) to survive?

 

 

I am really worried about his psychological and physical well being as after losing custody of his children,I fear this has tipped him over the edge. He knows that when he gets work (because now he can), they are just going to rape his wages. It was a real shock for everyone that he lost custody, and his estranged only went for it so she wouldn't constantly be pestered to get a job.

 

When are they ever going to sort this mess they call The CSA out?

Edited February 18, 2010 by SOD'EM
Typo

[ErikaPNP]

The £64.50 factors in everything, including paying back loans etc. Apparently. Yes, it is allowed. The maximum the CSA can take is £5 per week. He can ask for his Social Fund Loan to be "rescheduled" (lower repayments), but the decision is discretionary based upon his financial circumstances.

[SOD'EM]

Thanks Erika, he has received a letter saying that they will be deducting £6.60 per week towards Child Maintenance. Should he contact them regarding the £5.00 limit?

[csahelper]

Hi

 

Just read your message, sounds like your friend needs all the help he can get. What I would suggest is to ring the benefits agency - they have to deduct the £5.00 per week - which is what your friend will be liable to pay per week. They can then 'request' from the job centre that an extra £1 is taken for any arrears accrued on the case. The maximum that can be taken is £1 for arrears. So in total £6.00 for CSA.

 

When your friend gets a job - tell him to contact the csa - provide wage slips and tell him to start making the weekly amount.. If he doesnt they will go straight to his employer and deduct up to 40% of his income.. so it is in his interest to communicate with them. Tell him to find out what his arrears are and that he wants to negotiate a figure with them.. that way he is in control and they wont be able to go straight to his employer.. this may help a little..

 

Hope thats ok..

[SOD'EM]

Thanks for the info. I don't think he will bother getting a job now if they may take 40% of his wage. No wonder the Unemployment figures are so high.

[csahelper]

That is the max they can take.. depends if he is compliant.

If he has one child they will deduct 15%, 2 children 20%, 3 or more is 25%.. then a percentage for arrears..

 

Rubbish but true.. Hope your friend gets it sorted out anyway.

[SOD'EM]

Thanks again.

 

Do you know if they would take any expenses into account?

 

ie. Rent, Council Tax, food, clothes etc?

[jack1966]

they dont take anything into account - not rent, council tax, debt, food, nothing

[csahelper]

Hi

 

It depends when his case first started? If it started before 03/03/03 - they can take into account rent, other children in household, etc. But if his case has been transferred or opened after this time - it will be calculated on the new rules system - it will then be purely based on his income and will get a reduction if he has any children living in his household..

 

Hope that makes sense!

[2ltr16valve]

Hi

 

It depends when his case first started? If it started before 03/03/03 - they can take into account rent, other children in household, etc. But if his case has been transferred or opened after this time - it will be calculated on the new rules system - it will then be purely based on his income and will get a reduction if he has any children living in his household..

 

Hope that makes sense!

 

 

Does that not ignore the priority debt/bills thing ? as in rent, being paid before anything else ?

[csahelper]

If the case is old rules it is calculated alot differently, so rent, housing costs (water, gas, elec, service charges) all taken into account. Prior/existing debts will not be taken into account though.

 

If under new rules they do not look at these things, the only way to get any more deductions is through a variations process.. which looks at debts you may have with the ex partner (from when you were together) and you are still paying for.. if that makes any sense?!

[f0xy]

Sounds like the Csa case has opened recently to me and the only assessment on the case would be that of £5.00/week, so depending on when the case started to the first deduction from benefit being taken, he should not have that much arrears on his case, he can ring the csa and ask for an arrears breakdown, this would enable him to come to reasonable agreement to pay these back once he gets a job, as said above it would be in his interest to notify csa when he starts his job and ask for a new schedule to be sent to him, also ask howmuch the assessment will be and put aside that amount of money from his wages until it is all clarified and payment schedule sent out.

 

The money put aside would pay for the time it has taken to make the assessment to the time it takes to send the payment schedule out to your friend, all he would need to do would inform them that he can pay the lump sum when the payment schedule is calculated.

[SOD'EM]

I have spoken to someone who recently worked for the CSA and they told me that the policy on arrears is 30% of the persons take home wage, plus the standard 10%.

 

That's 40% of his wage, regardless of the arrears. He recieved a letter saying he owed £20,000 in arrears. I know that could probably be reduced, but he will still have to pay 40% of any wage earned regardless.

[f0xy]

How long as he had a csa case for? and has he been working for the majority of the life of the case?...i would suggest for him to get a full account breakdown. they would aim to collect arrears+regular maintenance at 40% of his salary with arrears of that amount.

[SOD'EM]

As far as I am aware, he has been working odd jobs throughout the 15 years the CSA have been after him but he was payed in cash (and probably never declared it, I'm not sure). I do know that he has never claimed benefits before so they will be wondering what he has been doing and where he has been for all them years.

 

 

He wants to go legitimate but he feels he has left it too late now.

[f0xy]

If he has been told he has £20,000 of arrears, this would highly indicate to me that there has been a DMD in place(Default Maintenance Decision) .. i can only comment on this from a new rules aspect, as i am not old rules trained. i do not know the amounts that would be used to calculate the old rules part of the case known as IMA's (Interim maintenance assessments)

 

Hopefully the below info will help a little, but if i am right in saying, if your friend had cooperated with the CSA and told them he had no disposable income when he was working cash in hand, he would have to give evidence to show how he is being supported. And this would make the case a nil assessment.

If he could not provide evidence of how he is supporting himself and is not currently in receipt of benefits then a DMD/IMA would most likely be put in place. as the Non resident parent is classed as being non-compliant.

 

Below is some information on IMa's and DMD's :

 

Interim Maintenance Assessment (IMA)

There are four categories of IMA:

Category A A category A IMA will be appropriate when the NRP fails to provide the information required to calculate an MA. This is usually when the NRP has not returned the MEF or other information requested.

 

Category B The NRP fails to provide information about a partner's income or A PWC fails to supply information about her partner's income if there is a natural child of their relationship.

 

Category C The NRP is self-employed and cooperating but cannot produce evidence to confirm their business income immediately.

 

Category D The NRP is not cooperating in providing the necessary evidence and verification to make a formal maintenance assessment, a Cat A IMA is in force and information has been received to indicate that the NRP is a high earner than at the time the Cat A IMA was imposed and /or there is a belief that the NRP accepted the Cat A IMA, knowing or expecting that the formal maintenance assessment would be at a higher rate because of earnings.

 

Default Maintenance Decisions

In new rules Interim Maintenance Assessments have been replaced with Default Maintenance Decisions (DMD). If the NRP has not provided sufficient information for a Maintenance Calculation to be made, a Default Maintenance Decision can be calculated. The NRP will be liable for the Default rate based on the number of more qualifying children:

 

• £30 where there is one more qualifying children
  
• £40 where there are two more qualifying children
  
• £50 where there are three or more qualifying children
  

[RaeUK]

Welcome to the benefits forum f0xy. Whilst CSA doesn't figure in my world, I'm sure your advice will be usefull to those who need it. I've tipped your scales to start you off...

Best wishes

Rae.

[SOD'EM]

Thank you for the information.

 

It appears that he did get a legiimate job about 6 years back but the CSA put an attachment of earnings on his wages which would have left him with basically the same as he would have recieved in benefits if he was to go and claim them. So he packed his job in and went back to working on the side.

 

He is actually seriously considering suicide at the moment and I really think he has the persona to do it. He knows is life is wrecked now and the CSA will not give a monkey's a**e about it.

 

I suppose they will say, he made his bed, so he can lie in it.

 

 

What gets me personally is, what about all the absent fathers that were about before the CSA. Why should they get a walk through. It is unfair to pick on people becuse of the generation they were in at the time. One rule for one should be for all. He actuall became a father just before the CSA was opened. I am sure he (and thousands of others) would have thought a bit more about contraception if he/they would have known the possible consequences of it.

 

 

It's a ridiculous institution that has been made worse by the governments lack of supporting the staff and the workings of it.

[f0xy]

I would suggest for him to right into the CSA, to explain how he is feeling etc, and this would be looked into with a great deal of seriousness.

 

If he can, it may be helpful for him to come to some agreement with the mother of the child, to go maintenance direct and get the arrears wiped off. This is only an option and may not be possible in this case.

 

But as it stands, ask your friend to get a full breakdown of his case and see if this tally's with what he was doing at the time the assessments where calculated.

[SOD'EM]

He feels that complying with them in the way you say would make things worse, and I tend to agree with him. The main reason is that he has worked many years without paying any tax, national insurance etc. Once that stone stone has been lifted, then a whole can of worms will be opened.

 

Getting in touch with the mother is not an option either. As far as he is aware, she has been claiming benefits for all these years so the money would go direct to the CSA anyway. The mother is not aware of, and does not care about any arrears.

[f0xy]

its a real shame this situation

 

I know its no good sayin now, but it would of been in her interest to be paid by him directly

 

..Just thought of 1 thing..if the arrears do get enforced via a liability order then anything before a certain date in 2000 would be classed as unenforced debt, so this would be wiped if the liability order is gained.

 

I think i am right in saying that, i will have to get some clarification

[SOD'EM]

He has recently been told to take time out by his doctor has he is suffering with severe hypertension (High Blood Pressure) and he has had to apply for Employment Support Allowance. He is now getting messages left on his answer machine telling him he needs to call a number 0151 633 **** (which is situated on the Wirral, so obviously CSA) and give his NI number.

 

Even if 4 years is unenforceable, he still owes 10 years and he can't live with that. He can't even be bothered fighting for his rights to see his children. I feel so sorry for him as he has never done any harm to anyone.

[jdes26]

DEAD BEAT DADS

 

get on this website

[SOD'EM]

Thanks jdes26, it looks really good.

 

I'm going to have a good scout through it and tell my friend.

Maybe there is a light:p.

 

Funny name for a website though, I thought you were being funny at first.

 

Thanks again.

[jdes26]

listen

 

the csa are not the best organisation.... im not condoning not paying the PWC but the csa dont play fair and whoever invented the csa percentages are down right bloody stupid!!!!!!!!!!!! the dead beat dads site are good if you get challenged legal in court as the CSA ARE NOT LAW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! alaways remember that

 

ps.................. GOOD LUCK